Police investigate deaths of family of 5

SACO, Maine (AP) — State Police say the deaths of a Saco family late Saturday night was a quadruple murder-suicide and one of the worst cases of domestic violence in Maine’s history.

That conclusion comes after the State Medical Examiner’s Office examined the bodies today in Augusta. The victims are 35-year-old Heather Smith, and the couple’s three children — Jason Montez, 12, Noah Montez, 7, and 4-year-old Lily Smith.

Detectives said 33-year-old Joel Smith shot his family about 11:30 Saturday night with a 12-gauge shotgun and then turned the gun on himself. The two boys were shot to death in their separate bedrooms, and the wife and daughter were shot in the bed in the parent’s bedroom. Joel Smith’s body was found on the floor next to them, with the gun by his side. There was not suicide note found.

Police have also not found any protection from abuse orders or court paperwork on the couple, since they moved to Maine.

The wife had told a family friend the night of the shooting that Joel Smith had threatened suicide earlier in the week by pointing a gun at his head. There is no indication that any assistance was sought after that incident.

Several neighbors told police they heard loud noises late Saturday night, but no one called police. The family friend became concerned Sunday morning and called a maintenance worker at the apartment complex to check on the family and that is when the deaths were discovered.

The family moved to Maine from Arizona a couple of years ago and Joel Smith worked at the apartment complex doing maintenance. Heather Smith worked as a medical assistant.

This is the sixth time since 1941 that four people have been killed in a multiple homicide in Maine. The most recent case in which four people were killed was at a Newry bed and breakfast in September of 2006.

Neighbors struggled earlier today to make sense of the shooting deaths. Most knew Joel Smith as a friendly maintenance worker at their apartment complex.

"I still don't want to believe it," said Heather Nason, who used to babysit the three children. "I love those children like they were my own."

They described a friendly family with a 4-year-old girl and boys aged 7 and 12 who were part of a group of neighborhood kids who constantly rode their bikes or played tag and other games in a community that residents described as safe.

"The kids were great. They were just happy kids, and it's just a huge shock," said Nason, who with her husband Dellas placed flowers outside the apartment on Sunday. As for the parents, "they'd take the shirt off their back for you," she said.

The droves of children who usually circle the complex were all inside Sunday evening, replaced by concerned adults watching the police.

Down the street, Vin Savage watched with a stunned look on his face. "This is a tragedy," he said. "It's mind-boggling."

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